PRB: "Setup Failed to Configure the Server" Error Message When You Install MSDE

If you install SQL Server Desktop Engine (also known as MSDE 2000), Setup may fail, and you may receive the following error message:

This problem may occur if the new MSDE instance name is the same as the previously removed MSDE instance name, and the data files of the previous MSDE instance still exist in the Data folder.

To work around this problem, use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Move the Previous MSDE Data Folder

To do so, follow these steps:

1. Start Windows Explorer.
2. Locate the Data folder for the previous MSDE instance.
   
   Note By default, the location of the Data folder for a named MSDE instance is C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL$instance_name. If you specify the datadir setup parameter during the installation, the location of the Data folder is value of DATADIR parameterMSSQL$instance_name.
3. Move the Data folder to a different location.

Method 2 : Change the Data Folder Location

Set the location of the Data folder to a location that is different from the location that you specified in the previous installation. You can specifiy the location of the Data folder for the new instance of the MSDE by using startup parameters. To do so, perform one of the following tasks:

• Use Command-Line Arguments

  To specify the setup parameters as a command-line argument, follow these steps:
  1. Open a command prompt, and then locate the directory of the MSDE files.
  2. Type the following command at the command prompt (where instance name is the MSDE instance name, installation drive is the name of the drive where the MSDE instance is installed, and data folder name is the name of the data folder):
     
     setup.exe /i Relative path of installation package file INSTANCENAME="instance name" DATADIR="installation drive:\Programfiles\Microsoft SQL Server\data folder name"
     

• Use the Setup.ini File

  To specify the setup parameters by using the Setup.ini file, follow these steps:
  1. Open a command prompt, and then locate the directory where the MSDE files exist.
  2. Use Notepad to open the Setup.ini file.
  3. Type the following information in the Setup.ini file (where Data_Folder is the full path of Data folder and Instance_Name is the name of the MSDE instance that you want to install):
     
     
     [Options]
     DATADIR ="Data_Folder"
     INSTANCENAME="Instance_Name"
  4. Save the Setup.ini file.
  5. Type the following command at the command prompt (where Installation_Package_File_Path is the full path of installation package file):
     
     setup.exe /i Installation_Package_File_Path /settings setup.ini

Method 3: Manually Remove the Previous Instance of MSDE

When you remove the MSDE instance by using the Add/Remove Programs tool, the Data folder that corresponds to the MSDE instance are not removed. To make sure that previous instance of the MSDE is completely removed, manually remove the MSDE instance.
For additional information about how to manually remove MSDE, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

If you remove a named instance of MSDE by using the Add/Remove Programs tool, the data files of that instance of MSDE are not removed. When you install an instance of MSDE that has the same name and Data folder path as the previous instance of MSDE, the MSDE installer does not create the system databases for the new instance of MSDE because system databases exist in the specified Data folder.

For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: